The invention relates to an apparatus for machining metal workpieces that has a machine frame with a vertical front wall having vertical guides and positioned above a machining station, a pick-up station offset horizontally from the machining station, and a drop-off station offset horizontally from the machining station. A vertical slide is vertically shiftable along the vertical guides on the machine frame and has horizontal guides. In turn a horizontal slide carrying a rotatably driven holder is horizontally shiftable along the horizontal guides on the vertical slide between respective pick-up, machining, and drop-off positions above the pick-up, machining, and drop-off stations. A holder is provided in the machining station, and one of the holders is adapted to hold a tool and the other of the holders for holding a workpiece for machining the workpiece in the machining station.
A similar such machine is described in WO 2006/063540. It has a machine bed comprising two vertical workpiece spindles and a movable traveling column for tools on the top of the bed. A shield is provided to prevent mutual contamination of the workpiece spindles, the shield being permanently attached to the traveling column or the frame. Two vertically movable sliding doors alternately release one of the two workpiece spindles for machining the workpieces clamped therein.